Blogs from Lijiang, Yunnan, China, Asia

Today was a day that I had been concerned about. I wanted to do this, I needed to do this to test my health, but it could have had repercussions. Today the trip took us up Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. We were to reach an altitude of about 4680 metres. The air is thin, it was also going to be cold and I had forgotten to bring warm clothes, they were sitting on my bed, somehow overlooked in the packing. But the altitude was the concern. You see 6 years ago I had open heart surgery and a quintuple bypass. Generally I am fit enough but thin air, lower levels of oxygen and the exertion of the climb was causing me some doubts about whether I should do this. In my 20's I climbed Mt Kenya ... read more

We arrived in Shuhe, which is one of the three old towns which make up the Old Town of Lijiang, about 2 hours after leaving Tiger Leaping Gorge. The Old Town of Lijian is located at an elevation of 2400m. The Old Town of Lijiang was awarded UNESCO World Heritage status in 1997 in recognition of the towns role as the intersection between the Silk Road and the Tea Horse Road; the architecture (including housing influenced by Han, Bai, Tibetan and Naxi) which is well preserved and urban planning and landscaping (including impressive water distribution system which conveys water throughout the town in a series of engineered channels among other things. The Old Town of Lijiang is one of the most popular tourist attractions in China. Apparently 80 million tourists visited last year. At times the ... read more

- admission to the Lion Hill Scenic area, 50Yuan. - taxi ride to the airport, 17:00, 20min, 80 Yuan. - flight from Lijiang to Kunming, China Eastern, Boeing 737, 20:05-21:10, 1h05. - flight from Kunming to Guangzhou, China Eastern Airlines, Boeing 737, 22:15-00:20, 2h05, (arriving 29/Nov/2015), 660Yuan for both flights. - Airport shuttle bus to the hotel,17Yuan. !---! Xinhe International Hotel Guangzhou Railway Station, Guangzhou, 288Yuan.... read more

After spending 2 night and 1 day in Dali, our next stop was Lijiand. We got there by taking a 3 hour train. It cost 39 yuan. We stayed in Shuhe old town, not far from Lijiang old town. That part got badly burned last year and we saw many abandoned buildings. Still, it was a very chilled out place.... read more

26 fév Ça klaxonne. La porte d'un mini bus bruyant s'ouvre et j'y embarque avec mon lourd bagage. Il est 11h15AM. Je devais quitter Dali bien avant mais un problème de communication m'a empêché de partir plus en matinée. Pour les foreigns, les problèmes de communication sont monnaie courante en Chine. Bref. Je prend donc place dans ce bus, sous le regard scrutateur des 17 passagers chinois. J'ai payé pour mon ticket mais je n'ai pas de ticket. Les petits tours de passe-passe sont aussi monnaie courante ici. Le bus quitte Dali pour se rendre à Lijiang, encore plus profondément dans les montagnes. Un écran-télé s'allume dans le véhicule. Play: règles de sécurité comme dans les avions. On nous précise comment attacher sa ceinture... et comment briser les vitres avec le petit marteau rouge au cas ... read more